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Fantine believes in inclusivity and providing access to
special varieties, and the skill required to work on these
crops. Many small-scale farmers that didn’t have access to
Geishas and special varieties now have the opportunity to
work on them and are very disciplined in what they are
doing. All of this is possible with the support of the com-
munity, roasters, and the consumers which will contribute
to projects in different regions. This is a progressive ap-
proach to make quality mainstream. Laura states, “More
people will have access to better coffee and the farmers will
benefit from new markets.”
What they are doing with Fantine is an achievement in
and of itself but I can’t help but list some of their recent ac-
complishments:
· Earned a place among The Meaningful Business 100 —
2019 for combining profit and purpose to achieve the UN
Sustainable Development Goals.
· Runner-up in the 2020 Global Maker Challenge in the
Innovation for Include Trade by The Mohammed Bin Rashid
“We decided to launch a NFT because I haven’t seen Initiative for Global Prosperity for their ability to support
many initiatives from the production side related to farm- rural communities in accessing new supply chains and markets
ers. We are working with Fundación Germinar, an NGO to create better livelihoods.
that works with hundreds of farmers in Colombia in the · Won the Pitch for Purpose competition organized by
region of Nariño. The focus is on training to improve the the Founder Institute.
quality of the crops and providing finance to harvest their · Invited to showcase as a social impact startup at the
crops,” said Federico. MWC Los Angeles 2019.
Determined to make a difference, Laura spoke about · Represented at WebSummit 2020.
the coffee school Fantine supports. “We also decided to Love ‘em or hate ‘em, the reality is that NFTs are here
support a coffee school and the focus here is to motivate the to stay. Naysayers will find them speculative and confusing,
children to stay in the coffee business. What we have seen but they can also be quite useful if used for the right appli-
is not only happening in Colombia but in many coffee pro- cation. The story of NFT is unfolding, their usefulness is
ducing countries — the upcoming generation is not inter- being realized, and products and services are already being BE INSPIRED.
ested in coffee anymore. They have seen their parents offered by companies who are aiming to be pioneers in this
struggling in the coffee business and conclude that coffee is area of expertise. BREW DIFFERENT.
not profitable for them.” It is being incorporated in the fashion world, real
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs should provide the expla- estate, play-to-earn games, smart event tickets, reward the new espresso machine
nation as to why the producers no longer want their children programs and many more. The idea of using art to build helping coffee professionals to offer
to go through the same. The theory states that in order to awareness and support environmental and sustainability a better coffee experience.
survive, basic needs must be met such as physiological, safe- issues is not new, but incorporating technology that enables
ty, food, shelter etc. Only then can an individual think about traceability will bring real change to issues besieging the
thriving and meeting their higher level needs. In order to coffee industry for years.
meet their elementary criterion, migration has become com-
mon practice in search for alternative income.
Other NFT initiatives are being planned to directly
benefit the supply chain at origin. Federico and Laura give us
a sneak preview on what to expect, “We are working in dif- Eventually all business
ferent regions and trying to understand what is needed by
our partner during specific periods of the year. For example, players will realize this @ranciliospecialty
implementing funding for processing stations in order for ranciliogroup.com
them to improve the quality of the coffee, or building green- and soon enough stan-
houses and dryers in farms so they can do all the processing
in-house and earn more for their coffee.” dardization will kick in.

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